This invention relates to articulated tractor vehicles having separate, hingedly connected frame sections respectively supported by traction wheels to which power is delivered through a power dividing transmission assembly.
Heavy duty tractors having articulated frame sections to facilitate steering thereof, are plagued with failure of differentials, universal joints, bearings and support castings because of shaft misalignment and vibration resulting therefrom. Various power dividing drive train and gear case support arrangements for such articulated vehicles have been heretofore proposed as disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,827,715; 3,115,205; 3,191,709; 3,270,829; 3,569,788 and 3,572,457 of which the inventor is aware. However, none of such prior art arrangements is believed to be capable of successfully coping with the problem to which the present invention is addressed. In most cases, the articulated frame sections of the vehicle are hingedly connected directly to each other about a vertical articulation axis while the transfer case for the power dividing gearing is fixedly carried by one of the frame sections as shown, for example, in aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 2,827,715 to Wagner. In the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 3,270,829 to Steiger et al, the transfer gear case is hingedly connected to one of the frame sections about a vertical hinge axis while the frame sections are interconnected to each other about separate perpendicular intersecting articulation and oscillation axes.
It is therefore an important object of the present invention to provide an articulated power dividing drive arrangement for heavy duty tractor vehicles that is relatively simple and better able to cope with drive shaft misalignment and vibration problems as compared to prior art arrangements.